MANILA — The Department of Health (DOH) on Friday clarified that it will be the Office of the President (OP) that will provide the PHP50,000 financial assistance to the family of each Dengvaxia recipient, who died after they were inoculated with the anti-dengue vaccine.
“The DOH will check the documents but it is the Office of the President which will release the assistance,” said Health Undersecretary Enrique Domingo in a text message to reporters.
Domingo said the decision to let the OP release the fund is also to allay suspicions that the financial aid is to discourage the families from filing charges against government officials involved in the implementation of the dengue immunization program.
To avail of the financial assistance, the health official said the families should present to the department the vaccinee’s birth and death certificates, medical abstract, and the Dengvaxia card.
Upon presentation of the requirements, Domingo said they will “check if the name (of the vaccinee) is on the master list.”
To date, a total of 75 deaths have been linked to Dengvaxia, which had been administered to more than 800,000 children across the country under the DOH’s school- and community-based dengue immunization program.
The controversy arose after Sanofi Pasteur, the maker of the vaccine, announced that severe dengue may occur among vaccinees who have not had dengue infection.
Investigations had been launched at the Senate and House of Representatives resulting in a recommendation to file cases against those responsible for rolling out the program.